Electrical connection for railway-rails.



E. HAYWARD.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTION FOR RAILWAY RAILS. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 21, 1905.

PATENTED JAN. 29, 1907.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EUGENE HAYWARD, OF CLAYTON, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO JOHN T. LUEDER AND ONE-THIRD TO JOHN B. MORRIS, BOTH OF CHI- CAGO, ILLINOIS.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTION FOR RAILWAY-RAILS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 29, 1907.

Application filed August 21, 1905. Serial No. 275,117.

thereon, which form a part of this specifica-' tion.

This invention relates to improvements in electrical connections for railway rails.

Heretofore informing electrical connections of this class it has been customary to unite the abutting ends of the-rails by means of wires, which have been secured at their ends to the ends of the rails and between their points of connection have extended along the side of the rails, generally on the outer side of the fish-plates and entirely exposed. This method has been more or.less objectionable by reason of the fact that the wires often become disconnected either through accident or by being tampered with by unauthorized parties.

The object of this invention is to provide a means for forming an electrical connectionat rail-joints which will be entirely inclosed and concealed between the fish-plates, thereby preventing its bein tampered with or injured and in which t e bonding-wire forms a very firm and secure contact.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and more fully pointed out and defined-in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a rail-joint with the fishplates removed and provided with means embodying my invention. tion taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the bonding-wire. I

As shown in said drawings, A and A represent abutting rails, which may be of any preferred construction, but which are shown as ordinary T-rails and the webs a of which are provided in their ends near the base of the rails with complemental recesses or notches, which when the rails are in place, as shown in Fig. 1, form an approximately semicylindric Fig. 2 is a secaperture A through the joint The inner ends of said notches 0r recesses are directed downwardly and form cylindric seats 0., extending transversely of the rail. Seated within said aperture A is the bonding-wire, (indicated as a whole by B,) and which, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3, comprises a wire or rod 6 of any preferred material and provided -with downwardly-bent ends on each of which is secured a contact-plug I). Said plugs, as shown, are tubular, though obviously they may be solid, and are apertured in their sides to receive the ends of said WllQ and are provided on their ends with outwardly-directed peripheral flanges b adapt ed to retain the wirein position when seated in said aperture. Said plugs engage in the cylindric seats at the ends of said recesses and the wire 12 extends longitudinally of the rails in the aperture A and, as shown, is curved downwardly centrally thereof to provide sufficient length to prevent breaking the connection by contraction of the rails due to changes of temperature, though obviously the wire may assume any other preferred form.

Fish-plates C C of any preferred construction are engaged upon the rails in the usual manner and engage with their lower edges against the flanges b thereby rigidly holding said bonding-wires in place.

The operation of my device is as follows: When the rails are placed end to end in the track, the notches or recesses in the ends thereof form an aperture through the rails at the joint, the inner ends of which are directed downwardly and adapted to receive the plugs 12, which are held in place by their flanges 12 The connecting-wire I), being rig idly engaged to said plugs, forms the electrical connectionbetweenthe rails, and owing to the central bend therein permits the contraction of the rails without rupturing the connection.

While I have shown the rails asordinary T-rails, it is obvious that any other preferred form of rail may be employed, and the aperture therethrough may assume various forms and the bonding-wire connecting the rails may be of anypreferred shape, and I therefore do not purpose limiting this applicationfor patent otherwise than as disclosed inthe prior art and as stated in the claims, as obviously many combination with abutting rail ends having an aperture therethrough, a contact-plug extending through the rail-Webs at each end of said aperture and a conductor connecting said plugs and concealed in said aperture;

2. In a device of the class describedthe combination with abutting rails having a recess therein of a bonding-wire concealed in said recess and a contactlug connected at each end thereof and seate in recesses at the ends of said aperture.

3. In a device of the class described the combination with abutting rails provided at the joint with an aperture therethrough having cylindric seats at the end thereof of transverse plugs engaged in said seats peripheral flanges thereon for limiting the inward movement of said plugs and means contained in said aperture for connecting said plugs. v

4. The combination with abutting rails, each provided with a cylindric seat and a recess opening therefrom to the end of the rail of a plug in each seatga bonding-Wire engaged with each plug and lying in said recesses, a peripheral flange on one end of each plug and means for holding said plugs in place.

5. In a device of the class described the combination with two abutting rail ends having' an aperture in each and provided with a seat at the base of each aperture, a tubular contact-plug seated in each seat, a conductor connected to said plugs and flanges on each of said plugs adapted to limit the transverse movement of the same;

6. A bonding-Wire of the class described comprising a plurality of transverse tubular plugs having an aperture opening into the same at an angle thereto, a wire having its ends projecting through said aperture and into said tubular plugs and a flange on one end of said plugs.

7. In a device of the class described thecombination with abutting rail ends having an aperture through the rail-web, a seat in each rail-web adjacent the end of said aperture, contact-plugs engaged in said seats transversely of the Web, a wire in said aperture rigidly engaged to said contact-plugs and means on the ends of said contact-plugs adapted to bear against the webs of the rail and acting to hold said wire from lateral -moven1ent.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name 111 the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

EUGENE HAYWARD. Witnesses J. B. Mo uus,

JOHN T. LUEDER. 

